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Dekow Barrow Mohamed, a member of the UDA party and the brother-in-law of Defence Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale, has emerged victorious in the Garissa Township parliamentary by-election that was held on Thursday, January 5, 2023.
Mohamed received 11,572 votes, beating out his closest competitor, Nassir Dolal Mohamed of United Democratic Movement (UDM), who received 8,158 votes.
The by-election featured a showdown between Duale and Mandera Senator Ali Roba, the leader of UDM.
Despite the defeat, Nassir expressed support for Mohamed and acknowledged that his rival had strong local support.
The seat fell vacant after Duale, the former MP, was appointed as Cabinet Secretary for Defence.
Political pundits had anticipated Mohamed's win due to Duale's efforts to rally the support of community leaders and politicians from the Abduwak clan.
Prior to the by-election, Mohamed had run for the position of Garissa governor on the UDA ticket but emerged a distant third.
Clan-based politics are a significant factor in the region, where negotiated democracy is often used to select politicians for elective positions.
Elsewhere in Shela Ward, Lamu county, Atwaa Salim Mohamed of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) emerged as the winner of the by-election after garnering 1,053 votes.
Mohamed Hassan Ali of the Amani National Congress (ANC) Party came in second with 573 votes, while Saamiya Mohamed Abduljabar of the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) and Nizar Mohamed Shee of the United Green Movement (UGM) placed third and fourth, with 45 votes and 10 votes respectively.
The seat had become vacant after the previously elected Member of the County Assembly (MCA) resigned to become the Lamu County Assembly Speaker.